HEADLINES
Arab states secretly strike Iran, widen conflict
Trump weighs Iran strikes, doubts diplomacy
Judge orders X to hand antisemitic posts

The time is now 4:01 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Regional Impacts, the US Embassy in Jerusalem warned that heightened tensions in the Middle East could lead to flight cancellations, airspace closures and other travel disruptions on Friday. US citizens traveling from Ben-Gurion or Haifa airports are advised to check their flight status with their airline and airport. Ben-Gurion Airport temporarily suspended takeoffs, explaining the shutdown was due to routine runway maintenance and that departures would resume at 11:00 p.m. The notice comes amid a cycle of strikes and counter-strikes in the region, including the United States resuming strikes on Iran two weeks ago and Iran resuming strikes on US assets in Gulf states, plus a Houthi attack on two Saudi tankers in the Bab el-Mandeb strait and a declared naval blockade. Earlier on Friday, sirens sounded across Bahrain. Jordanian armed forces intercepted seven Iranian missiles and six drones, and Kuwait said its air defenses intercepted multiple hostile targets from Iran. The attacks follow Iran’s overnight strikes against Kuwait and US military infrastructure in Jordan.

In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, Bahrain and Kuwait secretly sent fighter jets to strike Iran earlier this month, marking their first direct retaliatory action against Tehran, according to The Wall Street Journal. The airstrikes targeted drone and missile storage facilities and other military sites. Sources familiar with the matter said the two Gulf states have relatively small air forces but were unwilling to allow Tehran to continue attacking them without a response. The report notes that Saudi Arabia had joined the United Arab Emirates in strikes earlier in the war but is now reassessing its position. The United Arab Emirates, which attacked Iran earlier in the conflict, reportedly provided intelligence on targets and defensive air cover for the strikes, signaling emerging Arab cooperation against Iran.

In US Policy Concerning Israel, Trump convened top US officials to weigh escalating strikes on Iran, with reports saying he is growing skeptical of diplomacy and believes military force may be the only option. He has also expressed frustration with Netanyahu, according to a US official.

In Israeli Domestic Politics, an opinion piece asks whether Netanyahu could step down quietly like Hungary’s Orbán, noting the difficulty of such a move in Israel’s current political climate and suggesting that the street dynamics in the Arab sector could complicate leadership transitions. Another opinion piece on Yair Golan’s Democrats list for the Knesset notes that the Democrats’ primary process drew about 112,000 members, with 86% turnout and online voting, marking a revival for Labor as Golan works to reunite Labor with Meretz and position the party for a potential 2026 election result around ten seats, two more than Labor currently holds. A separate opinion argues that the October 7 trauma requires Israel to reexamine core assumptions and security concepts, citing a study that questions the growth of the Palestinian Authority security forces and what that means for Israel’s strategy.

In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, a federal judge ordered the social media platform X to turn over antisemitic and neo-Nazi posts, which it had removed from extremist accounts, to Media Matters for America. Chief Judge Reed O’Connor of the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that X must produce posts that were publicly available before deletion.

In Israeli Economy and Business, From soldiering to start-ups: Israel’s Druze community is building its own start-up ecosystem. Druze leaders, including Koftan Halabi, emphasize that “Our young people are our future,” and note that the community is creating infrastructure to support Druze veterans in entering higher education and the hi-tech job market. A fund has been created to advance discharged soldiers’ creative and technological ideas, enabling their entry into the hi-tech startup world. This effort builds on the Druze Veteran Association and began in 2009 as part of broader efforts to expand opportunities for Druze youth within Israeli society.

Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.

SOURCES
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-903576
https://t.me/JewishNews24/57657
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-903577
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rjxd2nwhzl
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-903290
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-903277
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-903330
https://t.me/JewishNews24/57658
https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/tech-and-start-ups/article-903481